Sunday, January 12, 2020

Transition Observation - Work Joy

Since being back for our vacation, I have been full bore into work...i.e. the stuff they pay me money for. I had one client when we were trying to schedule some additional meetings that the workload I seemed to be carrying did not make 'retirement' look all that attractive. I had to remind him that I am traveling out-of-the-country around 40% of the time. So even with my reduced workload (I have mentioned that I only work about a third as much as I did when I was working full time), that means the times I am in New Mexico and working will be busy.

What I did not tell him about was the Joy.

I have realized that that I have gotten so good at screening my new jobs and only getting those clients and work that I really love that virtually each business meeting I am in is a real pleasure. Pleasure from practicing your craft well. Pleasure for seeing the clients moving toward achieving their goals. There is a level of 'work satisfaction' that I never really experienced during all the years I worked full-time because to get the income I needed, I had to take on work that I didn't necessarily love and clients that may not have been the best fit.

So as I told the client who made the comment on how hard I was working, "Transition is not about going from working to not working. It is about going from a space of stress and worry to a place of pleasure and joy." That might not look to an outsider like a big change. But it is.

3 comments:

Bernice said...

Retirement is an adventure, isn't it.

Renee Michelle Goertzen said...

Some of the people in my community for fiance-focused people are not interested in the early retirement part, but in the financial independence part. I can see there is real freedom in being able to take only the work that you love, that is aligned with your values and interests. I'm glad you have this.

alexis said...

@RM - this is where I am aiming to achieve.